Update: Texas, Where Are the Judges?

8/17/2019 Update: Texas, Where Are the Judges?

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1 Center or American Progress | Update: Texas, Where Are the Judges?

Update: Texas, Where Are the Judges?By Anisha Singh, Abby Bar-Lev, and Phillip Martin May 2016

Jus hours beore Presiden Barack Obama’s nominaion o Judge Merrick Garland o

he U.S. Supreme Courand upon he recommendaions o exas’ wo U.S. senaors,

Republicans John Cornyn and ed Cruzhe nominaed five judges or long-vacan

seas on exas’ ederal cours.1 Given ha exas has more judicial vacancies han any

oher sae in he naionwih 11 vacancies overall, including hree ederal cour seas

ha have been empy or more han 1,000 days and a 12h uure vacancy expeced o become curren sooni is criical o exans and o he judicial sysem as a whole ha

hese five nominees receive swif consideraion rom he Senae.

Sens. Cornyn and Cruz, who boh si on he Senae Commitee on he Judiciary, can

play leading roles in ensuring ha he process moves orward, bu given heir recen

hisory, his does no seem very likely. Boh Sens. Cornyn and Cruz have joined heir

Republican Senae colleagues in reusing o give Judge Garland a confirmaion hearing,2

which does no bode well or he prospec o he five exas judicial nominees receiving a

hearing anyime soon. Te Senae’s inacion on he nominaion o Judge Garland is par

o a patern o obsrucing judicial nominees, and nowhere does his pracice play oumore criically han in exas.

In April 2014, he Cener or American Progress, in conjuncion wih Progress exas,

produced he issue brie “exas, Where Are he Judges?”, which highlighed he large

number o vacancies in exas ederal cours and he impac o hose empy judicial seas

on exans.3 Te brie also highlighed he lack o diversiy on exas’ ederal coursa

problem ha has no been addressed in recen years.

Because judicial nominees depend on he suppor o heir home-sae senaors o make

i hrough he Senae confirmaion process, he brie demonsraed how Sens. Cornyn

and Cruz were pivoal in creaing exas’ judicial vacancy crisis. According o he brie,

“Because ederal benches are siting empy in he Lone Sar Sae, exans canno have

heir cases heard in a imely manner. Meanwhile, exas ederal judges and heir saffs are

overworked.”4 Te brie urged he senaors o se aside heir parisanship disagreemens

wih he presiden and work in he bes ineress o he people o exas.


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oday, some wo years laer and wih he vacancies sill a criical concern or jusice

in exas, CAP has updaed is earlier brie, which is even more relevan in ligh o he

ongoing Supreme Cour vacancy batle. Some Republican senaorsCornyn and Cruz

includedare reusing o consider Presiden Obama’s judicial nominees, and wih a

Supreme Cour vacancy, he imporance o lower ederal cours is elevaed. Since he

deah o Jusice Anonin Scalia more han wo monhs ago, he Supreme Cour has

issued wo 4-4 decisions.5 Spli decisions creae no new Supreme Cour preceden anduphold he lower-cour rulings by deaul. Tis raises he sakes o he lower cours’

decisions and makes i all he more criical or senaors o prioriize filling hese lower-

cour vacancies as soon as possible.

Sens. Cornyn and Cruz should coninue o do heir jobs o helping fill exas’ 11 ederal

cour vacancies, including he wo long-running vacancies on he U.S. Cour o Appeals

or he 5h Circui. Wha’s more, a 12h ederal judicial vacancy is expeced o open in

exas in he nex ew weeks. Forunaely, he senaors already have suggesed a nominee,

bu Sens. Cornyn and Cruz need o sep up heir pace and work wih he Whie House

o choose nominees or he remaining empy seas. Tey should work o recommend judges who add much-needed diversiy o he bench. A he same ime, hey should hold

heir colleagues in he Senae leadership accounable and ask hem o conduc hearings

and hold voes or he five curren nominees and Judge Garland.

Understanding the judicial process

A judicial vacancy occurs when a judge retires, steps down, or is otherwise unable to per-

form his or her duties.

6

Future vacancies occur when a judge announces that he or she willbe retiring from the bench or taking senior status—a part-time role indicating a judge’s

intention to retire soon—by a certain date. Future vacancies matter because the moment

a judge announces he or she will be retiring at a future date is the same moment that the

president and senators can begin to work on filling that judge’s seat. Ideally, a new judge

has been nominated and confirmed by the time the retiring judge leaves the bench to

create a seamless process for keeping federal benches filled. A judicial emergency occurs

where there are not enough judges to hear the cases that are piling up on the docket.7

Home-state senators play a key role in every step of the process. The president nominates

a judge, usually following a recommendation from home-state senators. The same two

senators are then responsible for submitting blue slips of paper to demonstrate their ap-

proval. The Senate Judiciary Committee then holds a hearing and a vote. If approved, there

is a confirmation vote by the entire Senate. The Senate determines how quickly, if at all, the

president’s nominee moves through the confirmation process.


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Denying Texans access to justice

As o April 7, 2016, he 114h Congress has confirmed hree exas judges o he ederal

bench, wih he mos recen confirmaions aking place in May 2015.8 Tere are nine

curren disric cour vacancies in exas, seven o which opened up since CAP’s previ-

ous brie in April 2014. Addiionally, Judge Jorge Anonio Solis’ sea on he U.S. Disric

Cour or he Norhern Disric o exas will become vacan in May 2016bringinghe oal number o disric cour judicial vacancies in exas o 10.9 In addiion o he

disric cour vacancies, here are wo long-running circui cour vacancies. O he 12

curren and uure judicial vacancies, nine have been classified as judicial emergencies

an official designaion or cours severely overburdened because o judicial vacancies.10

FIGURE 1

Length of vacancies on Texas federal courts

Cumulatively, the 11 empty seats on Texas courts

have been vacant for 7,412 days—a total of 20 years

Source: U.S. Courts, " Current Judicial Vacancies," available at http://www.uscourts.gov/judges-judgeships/judicial-vacancies/

current-judicial-vacancies (last accessed April 2016).

Previously held byCurrent vacancy Days vacant since April 7, 2016

5th Circuit (Texas)

5th Circuit (Texas)

Emilio M. Garza

Carolyn Dineen King

1,346

828

1,772

688

1,009

463

64

429

394

328

91

Janis Graham Jack

Gregg Jeffrey Costa

Terry Means

Sam Ray Cummings

Mary Lou Robinson

Robert A. Junell

Richard A. Schell

Leonard E. Davis

Michael H. Schneider

Southern District

Southern District

Northern District

Northern District

Northern District

Western District

Eastern District

Eastern District

Eastern District

= 1 year

As o April 7, a cumulaive 2,174 days have passed since he wo seas on he 5h Circui

became vacan. Boh 5h Circui vacancies are also judicial emergencies.

exas has he mos vacancies on is ederal cours o any sae in he counry, wih no

oher sae even coming close. Alabama and Pennsylvania, wih he nex highes number

o vacancies, have six empy seas each.

exas also claims an alarming 32 percen o all judicial emergency vacancies.11 Tis per-

cenage is vasly disproporionae o he sae’s 8.14 percen o he naional populaion.12


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Unprecedented obstruction means delayed justice

Te 5h Circui has jurisdicion over exas, Mississippi, and Louisiana. In 2014, here

were 7,765 cases filed wih he 5h Circui, bu 4,638 pending appeals were lef unre-

solvedcreaing an enormous backlog.13 As ederal benches si empy in he Lone

Sar Sae, he cours remain overworked. Tis means ha counless exans and exas

businesses have no had heir cases heard in a imely manner. No having judges on he

bench has subsanial, real-world consequences or ens o housands o exans.

Why these numbers matter

Such an enormous backlog on he dockes o ederal cours keeps amilies and busi-

nesses rom obaining he jusice hey need and deserverom a low-wage worker suing

her employer or wage hef o an indigen deendan unable o afford bail spending

monhs behind bars waiing or a day in cour.

In Sherman, exas, or example, a lawyer recenly represened a clien who, he lawyer

eared, would languish in jail waiing or a rial, waching as her co-deendans pleaded

guily and finished heir erms beore her case was even heard.14 Delays in cour can

mean ha innocen people are pressured o ake plea bargains jus o ge ou o jail.15

Judicial vacancies also have also made “a huge difference in how he prosecuion looks

a cases,” he atorney said. “[Prosecuors] ell you your clien will be in jail because [her

co-deendans] ook a plea and she wans a rial … I’s a hammer over her headplead

guily and you’ll be ou o jail.”16 Te Consiuion guaranees he righ o a speedy rial,

bu elony rials mus work heir way hrough crowded dockes.

FIGURE 2

States with the highest number of judicial vacancies

Texas accounts for 11 vacancies out of 79 total vacancies nationwide

Source: Alliance for Justice, "AFJ Judicial Selection Dashboard," available at http://www.a.org/judicial-selection-dashboards (last accessed

April 2016).

Texas

Alabama

Pennsylvania

National average

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

11

6 6

1.58


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In addiion o hose involved in he jusice sysem, judicial backlogs have a real and

angible effec on he lives o al l Americans. For example, a 2015 independen sudy esi-

maed ha filling he wo vacancies in he U.S. Disric Cour or he Easern Disric o

exas alone would creae nearly 78,200 jobs and a ne economic benefi o abou $11.7

billion by 2030 in he disric.17

Some progress in Texas but not nearly enough

From May 2014 o April 2016, exas saw six disric cour confirmaions and one 5h

Circui confirmaion. While his is progress when i comes o filling empy seas, here is

sill no geting around he ac ha hose seas remained vacan or several yearssim-

ply pu, way oo long.18

FIGURE 3

Recent confirmations to Texas federal courts

Several seats have been filled, but a lot of work remains to fill the remaining seats

Source: U.S. Courts, "Judicial Confirmations for January 2015," available at http://www.uscourts.gov/judges-judgeships/judicial-vacancies/archive-judicial-vacancies/2015/01/confirmations/html

(last accessed April 2016); U.S. Courts, " Judicial Confirmations for May 2015," available at http://www.uscourts.gov/judges-judgeships/judicial-vacancies/archive-judicial-vacancies/2015/05/confirmations/

html (last accessed April 2016); U.S. Courts, "Judicial C onfirmations for June 2015," available at http://www.uscourts.gov/judges-judgeships/judicial-vacancies/archive-judicial-vacancies/2015/06/

confirmations (last accessed April 2016).

CourtConfirmed judge Days that seat was vacant

2,207

1,004

1,172

772

304

871

837

Western District

Eastern District

Eastern District

Southern District

Southern District

Southern District

5th Circuit (Texas)

Date confirmed

12/16/14

12/16/14

12/16/14

4/13/15

4/20/15

5/21/15

5/20/14

Robert Lee Pitman

Robert William Schroeder III

Amos Louis Mazzant III

Alfred H. Bennett

George C. Hanks Jr.

Jose Rolando Olvera Jr.

Gregg Jeffrey Costa

= 1 year

Sens. Cornyn and Cruz should prioriize filling exas’ remaining 11 vacancies in a imely

manner by srongly advocaing or a hearing and a voe on heir five nominees. Moreover,

hey mus work o ideniy nominees or he seven remaining vacancies in exas.

Te realiy, however, shows a naional ederal judicial landscape o widespread obsruc-

ion by Senae leadership. O he 27 saes wih curren judicial vacancies, 14 are

represened by wo Republican senaors, while only eigh saes have wo Democraic

senaors. Six more saes are spli beween he wo pariesone Democraic senaor

and one Republican senaor.19 Unil all senaors work ogeher, across he aisle, o fill he

ederal cours wih qualified juriss, access o jusice will remain problemaic or he mil-

lions o Americans in regions wih judicial vacancies.


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Racial and gender diversity suffers on the federal bench in Texas and

elsewhere

Diversiy on he bench is immensely imporan. Judges wih a variey o backgrounds

differen races, genders,20 and proessional and lie experiences21bring heir varying

and unique perspecives o he bench. Tis is imporan when i comes o bringing an

undersanding o how he law may operae differenly or differen groups o people, as well as o he effec ha a cour decision may have across swahs o he American public.

Te cours are asked wih ensuring equal jusice under he law, and a diversiy o judi-

cial perspecives helps ensure ha he Consiuion works or everyone. However, he

exas ederal judiciary ails o reflec he diversiy o he sae’s populaion.

FIGURE 4

Gender diversity on Texas U.S. district courts (43 judges)

72 percent of Texas district court judges are men

Source: Federal Judicial Center, " Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, 1789-Present," available at http://www.c.gov/history/home.nsf/page/

judges.html (last acccessed April 2016).

Women

Men

As Supreme Cour Jusice Ruh Bader Ginsburg has said on a number o occasions,

“[]here are lie experiences a woman has ha come rom growing up in a woman’s

body ha men don’ have.”22 For example, Jusice Ginsburg has said ha perhaps

emale judges bring “a litle more empahy” o he bench because “anybody whohas been discriminaed agains, who comes rom a group ha’s been discriminaed

agains, knows wha i’s like.”23 Moreover, an empirical analysis ound ha alhough

plainiffs mosly los in cases involving sexual harassmen and sex discriminaion

under ile VII o he Civil Righs Ac, hey were “wice as likely o prevail when a

emale judge was on he bench.”24

Despie he imporance o emale judges, in exas, women on he bench are ew and ar

beween. While more han hal o he populaion o exas is emale, less han one-hird

o exas’ ederal judiciary is emale.25 Tere are only 16 emale ederal judges on he

exas disric cours ou o a oal o 64 acive and semi-reired judges.26 Sens. Cruz

and Cornyn, afer no puting orward a woman or a ederal judgeship in more han

our years,27 have now included wo emale judgesU.S. Magisrae Judge Irma Carillo

Ramirez and ormer exas Sae Disric Judge Karen Gren Scholerin heir five

nominees o he presiden.28 Now he senaors mus work o ensure ha hese nominees

receive a air hearing and a imely voe.


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Te picure or racial diversiy on exas’ disric cours is slighly more nuanced.

Compared wih he numbers on gender diversiy, he percenage o Arican American

and Hispanic judges on exas’ cours is closer o ha o he exas populaion as a whole.

In exas, he populaion is 44 percen whie, 38.4 percen Hispanic, and 12.4 percen

black.29 Ou o a oal o 64 acive and semi-reired disric cour judges, here are 42

whie judges a 66 percen; 17 Hispanic judges a 27 percen; and 5 black judges a 7.8

percen.30

Te confirmaion o Judge Ramirez would bring he percenage o Hispanic judges closer o pariy wih he populaion o exas.

However, racial and ehnic diversiy is sorely lacking on he 5h Circui, and Sens.

Cornyn and Cruz have ye o work wih he presiden o fix his problem. Eigheen o

he 22 acive and semi-reired judges82 percenare whie, even hough whies

accoun or less han hal o he populaion o he hree saesexas, Louisiana, and

Mississippiin he circui. Around 17 percen o his populaion is black, bu only wo

black judges si on he 5h Circui. Jus wo o 22 judges on he circui are Hispanic,

even hough Hispanics accoun or 31 percen o he circui’s populaion.31 Tese sark

discrepancies illusrae he criical need o ake diversiy ino accoun when filling 5hCircui vacancies, including he wo vacan exas seas.

Some judges on he 5h Circui have ound hemselves embroiled in conroversies ha

some criics argue reveal a racial bias. For example, in February 2013, 5h Circui Judge

Edih Jones spoke a he Universiy o Pennsylvania Law School, where she allegedly,

according o sources, saed ha Arican Americans and Lainos are “predisposed o

crime.”32 In response, a coaliion o civil righs groups and proessors filed a judicial mis-

conduc complain, arguing ha her remarks indicaed a lack o imparialiy and violaed

several canons o he Code o Conduc or ederal judges.33 Tese ypes o occurrences

and he realiy ha hey porray o he public hur no only he 5h Circui’s neuraliy

and airness in handing down decisions bu also he legiimacy o hose very decisions

and he 5h Circui isel.

Te vacancies on he disric cours and 5h Circui provide an opporuniy or Sens.

Cornyn and Cruz o show a rue commimen o broadening he scope o who sis on

he bench by recommending qualified judges who mirror he populaion o exas.

FIGURE 5

Racial diversity on the 5th Circuit (15 judges)

80 percent of the judges on the 5th Circuit are white

Source: Federal Judicial Center, "Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, 1789-Present," available at http://www.c.gov/history/home.nsf/page/-

judges.html (last acccessed April 2016).

Hispanic

African American

White


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Rulings from the politicized 5th Circuit headed to the Supreme Court

Many in he legal communiy consider he 5h Circui Cour he mos conservaive and

ideologically driven cour in he counry.34 A 2014 aricle in he ABA Journal called i

“one o he mos conroversial, rancorous, dysuncional, saunchly conservaive and

imporan appellae cours in he counry.”35 Te aricle noed ha he 5h Circui has

someimes exhibied an “unpleasan undercurren” semming rom incidences o raciallycharged remarks and personal jabs beween judges.36

Te 5h Circui has issued exreme opinions on aborion, voer ID laws, and he

deah penaly, and i has a srong pro-business record.37 In ac, he U.S. Chamber o

Commerce has filed amicus bries in more han a dozen cases in he 5h Circui since

2007, and he cour has ruled in he chamber’s avor in 79 percen o hose cases, includ-

ing rulings involving he BP Deepwaer Horizon oil spill.38

A number o he siting 5h Circui judges have ies o he energy indusry. When a

lawsui by he vicims o Hurricane Karina agains ossil uel polluers made is way oa ull 5h Circui panel in 2013, here were no enough judges available o hear he case

because so many had o recuse hemselves due o a conflic o ineres.39 Te resul was a

disaser or vicims o Hurricane Karina and a vicory or he energy indusry, according

o a repor rom he Alliance or Jusice, a nonprofi membership organizaion dedicaed

o ensuring a air and jus judiciary.40

Tese conservaive, pro-business rulings ofen have implicaions beyond he

5h Circui isel. According o Edward Blum, direcor o he Projec on Fair

Represenaion, he group ha brough redisricing and affirmaive acion cases o

he Supreme Cour his year, “[A]dvocaes wishing o bring liigaion ha will resulin high-profile, conservaive oucomes ha[ve] incenive o go o he 5h Circui.” 41

Addiionally, many o he decisions coming ou o he 5h Circui have unwound crii-

cal precedens. In some insances, a bad decision rom he 5h Circui has been he

lone cause o a circui spli, when he 5h Circui has srayed rom he legal inerprea-

ions acceped by is ellow circuis.

Given his environmen, i is perhaps no surprising ha he Supreme Cour is review-

ing a disproporionae number o 5h Circui rulings in 2016. Te Cour is reviewing

Whole Woman’s Healh v. Cole ,42 a case ou o he 5h Circui in which Republican-

appoined judges upheld provisions o a exas law ha imposes medically unnecessary

resricions on aborion aciliies, resuling in he closure o many o he sae’s clinics.43

Tree 5h Circui judges no only upheld provisions o he law ha would resul in clinic

closures in a series o decisions, bu hey also wen ou o heir way o ensure ha he

clinics would close as soon as possible. On Ocober 31, 2013, anoher hree-judge panel

unanimously graned he sae an emergency say ha allowed he law o shuter clinic

doors even while i was sill being challenged in cour.44 Te challenged provision o he


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saue requires aborion clinic docors o have admiting privileges a a nearby hospial,

a medically unnecessary requiremen ha is ofen impossible o mee, since hospialscan use poliical reasons o rejec applicaions or admiting privileges.45

In June 2015, afer upholding he exas law’s admiting privileges requiremen, he

5h Circui upheld a second provision o he exas law ha requires aborion pro-

viders o mee he same building sandards as hospials. Te sae argued ha he

law saeguards women’s healh, bu in realiy, hese sandards do nohing o proec

women’s healh or saey.47 Aborion aciliies would be required o underake expen-

sive and unnecessary building changes such as widening heir hallways and insalling

equipmen ha is never used during an aborion procedure.48 exas required one

clinic o change he color o he pain on is walls and insall emergency medicalequipmen ha i never used.49 Noneheless, he 5h Circui acceped he sae’s argu-

men.50 Decisions ha close clinic doors unnecessarily devasae women. In ac, a

recen sudy ound ha women were orced o ravel our imes arher o an aborion

clinic, ofen could no ge he medicaion aborion hey waned, and aced a leas

hree unnecessary hurdles o obaining an aborion.51

Even as he 5h Circui aced quickly o close exas aborion clinics, i moved a a glacial

pace in making a decision on Presiden Obama’s immigraion direcivesDeerred

Acion or Parens o Americans and Lawul Permanen Residens, or DAPA, and

an expansion o Deerred Acion or Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. An aricle ha

appeared in Te New York imes suggesed ha he delay was a acic o lessen he

case’s chances o reaching he Supreme Cour his erm, arguing ha he delay rings

o “poliical behavior ha is unconscionable or a ederal cour.”52 And when he 5h

Circui finally decided he case 2-1, he judges blocked he policies rom going ino

effec.53 Te dissening judge, Carolyn Dineen King, concluded her opinion by confirm-

ing he unaccepable delay: “I have a firm and definie convicion ha a misake has

How a case reaches the Supreme Court

Typically, a case reaches the Supreme Court in one of two ways. Some state cases may

be appealed directly from a state supreme court if they involve federal law. Cases in the

federal courts typically must work their way from a federal district court, where trials are

held, to a federal appellate court and then can be appealed to the Supreme Court. There

are some instances in which the Supreme Court may be more likely to take a case than oth-

ers. For example, if a case involves an issue that has created a circuit split—meaning that

circuit courts have ruled in different ways on the same legal question—the Court typically

is more likely to take the case to resolve the dispute. But the Court always has the final say

on which cases it hears. Although about 1,000 cases are appealed to the Supreme Court

every year, it typically only decides about 75 cases.46


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been made. Ta misake has been exacerbaed by he exended delay ha has occurred

in deciding his ‘expedied’ appeal. Tere is no jusificaion or ha delay.”54 Te ruling

has lef in limbo abou 4 million parens and children who would have been eligible or

deerred acion under he policies, as well as 6.1 million U.S. ciizen relaives who live in

he same household as one o hese immigrans.55

Te Supreme Cour has srongly rebuked he 5h Circui on several occasions. In 2008,Robbie olana budding proessional baseball player in exaswas sho hree imes

by a police officer ouside his home afer he officer incorrecly idenified olan’s car

as a solen vehicle. olan survived he shos bu was lef wih a lie-alering injury ha

ended any chance o a proessional baseball career. Te ederal disric cour ound

ha he officer’s use o orce was no unreasonable, and less han a monh laer, he 5h

Circui upheld he disric cour’s decision.56 In a unanimous decision, he Supreme

Cour reversed he 5h Circui. Te Cour essenially ound ha he 5h Circui worked

backward rom is own conclusion, saying ha i “ail[ed] o credi evidence ha conra-

diced some o is key acual conclusions.”57 Even Jusice Samuel Alio, who many view

as “he mos pro-prosecuion Jusice on he Cour,”58

wroe separaely bu agreed hahe 5h Circui should be overruled.59

In 2015, he Supreme Cour again reversed a 5h Circui decision ha raised he

quesion o when a criminal deendan is eniled o a hearing o deermine wheher,

under he Consiuion, he is oo inellecually disabled o be execued by he sae.

Te ederal disric cour ound ha he deendan, whose IQ was around 65 or 70, had

“significanly limied concepual skills,” which made him ineligible or execuion.60 Te

5h Circui reversed his ruling and deerred o a sae cour decision ha would have

allowed he deendan o be execued wihou a hearing on his inellecual disabiliy.61

Te Supreme Cour overruled he 5h Circui, saing ha is decision was “based on anunreasonable deerminaion o he acs.”62

Now, wih a vacancy on he Supreme Cour resuling rom he deah o Jusice Scalia

and only eigh jusices o decide criical cases, he 5h Circui’s decisions loom ever more

imporan. ypically, wih a ull nine-member Supreme Cour bench, only a majoriy o

he Cour could decide o uphold he 5h Circui’s decisions. Bu wih an eigh-jusice

Supreme Cour, here are now wo ways ha he Cour may uphold he 5h Circui: by a

majoriy voe or by a ied voe. I he Supreme Cour voes 4-4, he lower-cour decision

he 5h Circui in hese insancesis upheld by deaul.63 Tereore, filling he vacancies

on he 5h Circui now wih excepionally well-qualified and diverse nominees is criical.

Changes on the border: The Western and Southern districts

Progress has been made on he vacan judgeships in he exas disrics ha serve he U.S.-

Mexico border, an area wih a paricularly large caseload. Te Wesern and Souhern dis-

rics serve some o he ases-growing populaions in he counry, and heir dockes have


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been swollen by drug and immigraion cases.64 As noed in CAP’s 2014 repor, he five

ederal judicial disrics along he souhwes borderwhich include exas’ Wesern and

Souhern disrics ha serve El Paso, San Anonio, and Laredo“accouned or 56 percen

o all ederal suspecs arresed and booked in he U.S. and 90 percen o all immigraion

arress in 2010” and “handled he larges number o elony cases per judge in he ederal

criminal cour sysem,” according o he U.S. Deparmen o Jusice.65

Wih so many cases involving immigraion issues, backlogs in he Wesern and Souhern

disrics pile up. As hey do, immigrans and heir amilies ofen remain in legal limbo,

waiing or heir day in cour. A recen aricle in Te Dallas Morning News looked a he

immigraion cour experience o Jeong-Seok Kang, who is rom Souh Korea bu lived

or years in Dallas. Alhough his visa has expired, Kang’s atorney says he is eligible or

permanen residency because his wie recenly obained a green card and he lacks a

criminal record. According o he aricle:

Kang has been in America long enough o raise wo sons and run a amily-owned

doughnu shop in Irving. Aer years o worrying, he hinks he’s abou o find ou his ae. Tings look promising. Bu Sims ses a meri hearing or Dec. 6, 2017. Kang

is caugh in an immigraion cour sysem ha is bursing wih huge caseloads and

sressed by a seemingly endless shorage o judges.66

All hree judges confirmed in 2015 were rom he U.S. Disric Cour or he Souhern

Disric o exas, bu here are sill hree vacancies remaining across he Wesern and

Souhern disrics. As o April 7, 2016, hese seas have sa empy, collecively, or more

han 2,880 days, or nearly eigh years.67

Currenly, here is only one pending nominee or hree vacancies in he Wesern andSouhern disrics.68 Even i some o hese vacancies are filled, i will ake ime o work

hrough he exising backlog o cases in hese cours.

Conclusion

Te ramers o he Consiuion inended he judicial branch o be an independen arm

o he governmen, asked wih proecing he righs o individual ciizens hroughou

he counry. Ye when judicial seas si empy or days, monhs, or yearsas hey have

in exasjusice suffers everywhere. Te judicial vacancy crisis in exas is harmul

o he very oundaion o our naion’s judiciary. I is even more harmul in ligh o he

curren vacancy on he Supreme Cour, which has and could coninue o uphold lower-

cour decisions by ailing o reach a majoriy decision and deadlocking wih a 4-4 ie.

Te American peopleespecially hose who live in saes where he law is affeced by

he vacancy on he Supreme Cour and hose waiing or and denied heir day in cour

because here are oo ew ederal cour judgescanno wai any longer o have judicial

vacancies filled. In no place is ha more rue han exas.


12/14


exans, like Americans everywhere, value heir consiuionally proeced access o

jusice, ye exas coninues o hold he record or he highes number o judicial vacan-

cies in he counry. CAP’s April 2014 brie said, “Sens. Cornyn and Cruz mus pu heir

consiuens above poliical gamesmanship and end heir unwavering obsrucion o

he ederal judicial nominaion process.”69 Now ha hey have worked wih he W hie

House on five nominees, he wo exas senaors should coninue doing heir jobs and

push or a hearing and a voe on hese nominees.

I is criical ha he Senae hold an up-or-down voe on hese excepionally well-qual-

ified pending judicial nominees. Simulaneously, Sens. Cornyn and Cruz should work

wih he presiden o fill remaining vacancies, including he crucial seas on he 5h

Circui and he Supreme Cour. Only when his judicial crisis is remedied can exans

be assured ha heir consiuionally guaraneed access o a ully uncioning and air

judiciary is proeced.

Anisha Singh is he Campaign Manager or Legal Progress a he Cener or American

Progress. Abby Bar-Lev is a Policy Analys or Legal Progress. Phillip Marin is he depuydirecor o Progress exas, based in Ausin.

Te auhors would like o hank heir fiends a he Alliance or Jusice, paricularly Nahaniel

Gryll, or heir assisance ac-checking his issue brie and heir atenion o hese imporan

issues. Tey also would like o hank heir colleagues a he Cener or American Progress:

Billy Corriher, Michele Jawando, Jake Faleschini, anya Ardii, ormer Legal Progress inerns

Maya Efai and Maheen Ahmed, and he enire Ar and Ediorial eams.


13/14


Endnotes

1 Kevin Krause, “Former Dallas judge among Obama’s nomi-nees or ederal bench,” The Scoop Blog, March 16, 2016,available at http://thescoopblog.dallasnews.com/2016/03/obama-nominates-ormer-dallas-judge-to-ederal-bench.html/.

2 The Dallas Morning News, “Editorial: Obama’s done his job, now it’s time or senators to do theirs,” March 16,

2016, available at http://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/editorials/20160316-editorial-obamas-done-his-job-now-its-time-or-senators-to-do-theirs.ece.

3 Sandhya Bathija, Joshua Field, and Phillip Martin, “Texas,Where Are the Judges?” (Washington: Center or AmericanProgress, 2014), available at https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/civil-liberties/report/2014/04/02/86910/texas-where-are-the-judges/.

4 Ibid.

5 Richard Wol, “High court deadlocked on war betweenstates,” USA Today , April 19, 2016, available at http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2016/04/19/supreme-court-caliornia-nevada-states-tie-vote/83227728/. A recentruling, Franchise Tax Board of California v. Hyatt , was decided6-2. One o the issues within the case, however, was decided4-4.

6 Anisha Singh and Kulsum Ebrahim, “Just a Judge,” Centeror American Progress, December 8, 2015, available athttps://www.americanprogress.org/issues/civil-liberties/news/2015/12/08/126705/just-a-judge/.

7 Jake Faleschini and Erin Whalen, “Inographic: TheJudicial Vacancy Crisis by the Numbers,” Center orAmerican Progress, December 8, 2015, available athttps://www.americanprogress.org/issues/civil-liberties/news/2015/12/08/126434/inographic-the-judicial-vacancy-crisis-by-the-numbers/.

8 U.S. Courts, “Confirmation Listings,” available at http://www.uscourts.gov/judges-judgeships/judicial-vacancies/confirmation-listing (last accessed April 2016).

9 Steven Callahan, “Chie Judge Solis to Retire in May 2016,”Northern District o Texas Blog, March 16, 2016, available athttp://www.ndtexblog.com/?p=3813.

10 Alliance or Justice, “John Cornyn and Ted Cruz’s Texas: AState o Judi cial Emergency,” available at http://www.af.org/our-work/issues/judicial-selection/texas-epicenter-o-thejudicial-vacancy-crisis (last accessed April 2016).

11 U.S. Courts, “Judicial Emergencies,” available at http://www.uscourts.gov/judges-judgeships/judicial-vacancies/judicial-emergencies (last accessed April 2016).

12 Bureau o the Census, “Quick Facts: Texas,” available at http://quickacts.census.gov/qd/states/48000.html (last accessedFebruary 2016).

13 U.S. Courts, “U.S. Courts o Appeals Federal Court Manage-ment Statistics (December 31, 2014),” available at http://www.uscourts.gov/statistics/table/na/ederal-court-man-agement-statistics/2014/12/31-0 (last accessed April 2016).

14 Alicia Bannon, “The Impact o Judicial Vacancies on Federal Trial Courts” (New York: Brennan Center or Justice, 2014),available at https://www.brennancenter.org/publication/

impact-judicial-vacancies-ederal-trial-courts.

15 Ibid.

16 Ibid.

17 The Perryman Group, “‘… And Justice or All’” (2015), avail-able at http://perrymangroup.com/wp-content/uploads/Perryman-Judicial-Inrastructure-7-30-2015.pd.

18 U.S. Courts, “Judicial Confirmations or January 2015,”available at http://www.uscourts.gov/judges-judgeships/ judicial-vacancies/archive-judicial-vacancies/2015/01/confirmations/html (last accessed April 2016); U.S. Courts,“Confirmation Listings.”

19 Alliance or Justice, “AFJ Judicial Selection Dashboard,” avail-able at http://www.af.org/judicial-selection-dashboards (last accessed April 2016).

20 Susan B. Haire and Laura P. Moyer, Diversity Matters: JudicialPolicy Making in the U.S. Courts of Appeals (Charlottesville,VA: University o Virginia Press, 2015).

21 Alliance or Justice, “Broadening the Bench: Proessional Di-versity and Judicial Nominations” (2016), available at http://www.af.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Proessional-Diversity-Report.pd .

22 Jack Torry, “Ginsburg Wants Court to Add SecondWoman,” The Columbus Dispatch, April 11, 2009, availableat http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/national_world/2009/04/11/ginsburg.ART_ART_04-11-09_A3_HLDH-9PG.html.

23 Richard Wol, “Ginsburg’s dedication undimmed ater 20years on court,” USA Today , August 1, 2013, available at http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/07/31/

ginsburg-emale-justices-no-shrinking-violets-/2606239/.

24 Jennier L. Peresie, “Female Judges Matter: Gender and Col-legial Decisionmaking in the Federal Appellate Cour ts,” YaleLaw Journal 114 (7) (2005): 1759, 1761, available at http://www.yalelawjournal.org/pd/211_35ddrdm9.pd .

25 Bureau o the Census, “QuickFacts: Texas.”

26 Ibid.

27 Progress Texas, “Put Women on Texas Courts,” available athttp://act.progresstexas.org/sign/put-texas-women-texas-courts/ (last accessed March 2016).

28 Krause, “Former Dallas judge among Obama’s nominees orederal b ench.”

29 Bureau o the Census, “QuickFacts: Texas.”

30 Federal Judicial Center, “Biographical Directory o FederalJudges, 1789-Present,” available at http://www.fc.gov/history/home.ns/page/research_categories.html (last ac-cessed April 2016).

31 Federal Judicial Center, “Diversity on the Bench: PacificIslander Judges on the Federal Courts,” available at http://www.fc.gov/servlet/nDsearch?race=Pacific+Islander (lastaccessed April 2016); Federal Judicial Center, “Diversity onthe Bench: Hispanic Judges on the Federal Courts,” availableat http://www.fc.gov/servlet/nDsearch?race=Hispanic(last accessed April 2016); Federal Judicial Center,“Diversity on the Bench: Asian American Judges on theFederal Courts,” available at http://www.fc.gov/servlet/nDsearch?race=Asian+American (last accessed April 2016);Federal Judicial Center, “Diversity on the Bench: America nIndian Judges on the Federal Courts,” available at http://www.fc.gov/servlet/nDsearch?race=American+Indian (last accessed April 2016); Federal Judicial Center,“Diversity on the Bench: Arican American Judges on theFederal Courts,” available at http://www.fc.gov/servlet/

nDsearch?race=Arican+American (last accessed April2016).

32 Gregory J. Kuykendall and others, “Complaint o JudicialMisconduct Against Judge Edith Jones,” available at http://lawproessors.typepad.com/files/ethics-complaint.pd(last accessed March 2016); Will Weissert, “Edith Jones,Federal Judge, Made Racist Remarks, Claimed Minorities‘Predisposed to Crime’: Complaint,” Arican America, June5, 2013, available at http://www.aricanamerica.org/topic/edith-jones-ederal-judge-made-racist-remarks.

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33 Jessica Mason Pieklo, “Civil Rights Groups Appeal Dismissalo Ethics Complaint Against Judge Edith Jones,” Rewire,October 16, 2014, available at http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2014/10/16/civil-rights-groups-appeal-dismissal-ethics-complaint-judge-edith-jones/.

34 Dianna Wray, “Backstory: The Fith Circuit Wasn’t Always theMost Conservative Court Around,” Houston Press, November6, 2014, available at http://www.houstonpress.com/news/backstory-the-fith-circuit-wasnt-always-the-most-conser-vative-court-around-6715354.

35 Mark Curriden, “Meet the chie judge o the nation’s most

divisive, controversial and conservative appeals court,” ABA Journal , February 1, 2014, available at http://www.abajour-nal.com/magazine/article/meet_the_chie_judge_o_the_nations_most_divisive_controversial.

36 Ibid.

37 Stephanie Mencimer, “George W. Bush’s Revenge: A FederalAppeals Court G oes on the Rampage,” Mother Jones, Octo-ber 22, 2014, available at http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/10/george-bush-fith-circuit-court-abortion-voting-rights.

38 U.S. Chamber Litigation Center, “U.S. Court o Appeals orthe Fith Circuit,” available at http://www.chamberlitiga-tion.com/cases/court/us-court-appeals-fith-circuit (lastaccessed April 2016).

39 Alliance or Justice, “The Judges o the United States Courto Appeals or the Fith Circuit ” (2013), available at http://

www.af.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Fith-Circuit-Judges-Report-FINAL.pd .

40 Ibid.

41 Richard Wolff, “At Supreme Court, Lone Star State standsapart,” USA Today , December 20, 2015, available at http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2015/12/20/supreme-court-texas-abortion-immigration-race-vot-ing/77304068/.

42 Whole Woman’s Health v. Cole, 790 F.3d 598 (5th Cir. 2015).

43 Planned Parenthood of Greater Tex. Surgical Health Servs. v. Abbott , 748 F.3d 583 (5th Cir. 2014); Whole Woman’s Health v.Cole, 790 F.3d 563 (5th Cir. 2015).

44 Planned Parenthood of Greater Tex. Surgical Health Servs. v. Abbott , 734 F.3d 406 (5th Cir. Tex. 2013).

45 American Congress o Obstetricians and Gynecologists,

“ACOG and AMA File Amicus Brie in Planned Parenthoodv Abbott,” Press release, December 20, 2013, available athttp://www.acog.org/About-ACOG/News-Room/News-Releases/2013/ACOG-and-AMA-File-Amicus-Brie.

46 Supreme Court o the United States, “Frequently AskedQuestions,” available at http://www.supremecourt.gov/aq.aspx#aqgi9 (last accessed April 2016).

47 American Congress o Obstetricians and Gynecologists,“ACOG and AMA File Amicus Brie in Planned Parenthood vAbbott.”

48 Annika Mukherjee , “The Institutionalization o AbortionStigma: What Care at an Ambulatory Surgical Center CanLook Like,” Rewire, October 2, 2015, available at http://re-wire.news/article/2015/10/02/institutionalization-abortion-stigma-care-ambulatory-surgical-center-looks-like/.

49 Ibid.

50 Whole Woman’s Health v. Cole, 790 F.3d, p. 563.

51 Lucy Stein, “Video: More Proo o How Texas Anti-AbortionLaws Harm Women,” Texas Research Institute blog, March24, 2016, available at http://texasresearch.org/blog/video-more-proo-how-texas-anti-abortion-laws-harm-women.

52 Michael Shear and Julia Preston, “In Courts, Running Outthe Clock on Obama Immigration Plan,” The New YorkTimes, October 14, 2015, available at http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/14/us/in-courts-running-out-the-clock-on-obama-immigration-plan.html?_r=1.

53 Texas v. United States, No. 15-40333, 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS19725 (5th Cir. Nov. 9, 2015).

54 State of Texas, et al. v. United States of America, et al. No.15-40238 (5th Cir. Nov. 9, 2015) (King, C., dissenting),available at http://www.scotusblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/15-40238-CV0.pd .

55 Lizet Ocampo, “DAPA Matters to U.S. Citizen Family Mem-bers in States Across the Country,” Center or American Prog-ress, Center or American Progress, March 22, 2016, availableat https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/news/2016/03/22/133797/dapa-matters-to-u-s-citizen-amily-members-in-states-across-the-country/.

56 Tolan v. Cotton, 713 F.3d 299 (5th Cir. 2013).

57 Tolan v. Cotton, 134 S. Ct. 1861, 1866 (2014).

58 Garrett Epps, “Supreme Court: Police Can’t Brutalize Your

Elderly Mother,” The Atlantic , May 8, 2014, available at http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/05/supreme-court-police-cant-brutalize-your-elderly-mother-or-shoot-you-when-youre-unarmed/361934/.

59 Tolan, 134 S. Ct., p. 1869 (Alito, J., concurring).

60 Brumfield v. Cain, 854 F. Supp. 2d 366, 392, 401 (MD La.2012).

61 Brumfield v. Cain, 744 F. 3d 918 (5th Cir. 2014).

62 Brumfield v. Cain, 135 S. Ct. 2269 (2015).

63 Michele L. Jawando and Billy Corriher, “Justice Waits ora 9-Member Court” (Washington: Center or AmericanProgress, 2016), available at https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/civil-liberties/report/2016/03/14/133139/justice-waits-or-a-nine-member-supreme-court/.

64 Curriden, “Meet the chie judge o the nation’s most divisive,

controversial and conservative appeals court.”

65 Mark Motivans, “Immigration Offenders in the Federal Jus-tice System 2010” (Washington: Bureau o Justice Statistics,2012), p. 8, available at http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pd/iofs10.pd .

66 Dianne Solis, “Chaos, backlogs straining immigration courts,”The Dallas Morning News, February 21, 2016, available athttp://www.dallasnews.com/news/metro/20160221-chaos-backlogs-straining-immigration-courts.ece.

67 Alliance or Justice, “AFJ Judicial Selection Dashboard.”

68 Ibid.

69 Bathija, Field, and Martin, “Texas, Where Are the Judges?”
http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2014/10/16/civil-rights-groups-appeal-dismissal-ethics-complaint-judge-edith-jones/http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2014/10/16/civil-rights-groups-appeal-dismissal-ethics-complaint-judge-edith-jones/http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2014/10/16/civil-rights-groups-appeal-dismissal-ethics-complaint-judge-edith-jones/http://www.houstonpress.com/news/backstory-the-fifth-circuit-wasnt-always-the-most-conservative-court-around-6715354http://www.houstonpress.com/news/backstory-the-fifth-circuit-wasnt-always-the-most-conservative-court-around-6715354http://www.houstonpress.com/news/backstory-the-fifth-circuit-wasnt-always-the-most-conservative-court-around-6715354http://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/meet_the_chief_judge_of_the_nations_most_divisive_controversialhttp://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/meet_the_chief_judge_of_the_nations_most_divisive_controversialhttp://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/meet_the_chief_judge_of_the_nations_most_divisive_controversialhttp://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/10/george-bush-fifth-circuit-court-abortion-voting-rightshttp://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/10/george-bush-fifth-circuit-court-abortion-voting-rightshttp://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/10/george-bush-fifth-circuit-court-abortion-voting-rightshttp://www.chamberlitigation.com/cases/court/us-court-appeals-fifth-circuithttp://www.chamberlitigation.com/cases/court/us-court-appeals-fifth-circuithttp://www.afj.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Fifth-Circuit-Judges-Report-FINAL.pdfhttp://www.afj.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Fifth-Circuit-Judges-Report-FINAL.pdfhttp://www.afj.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Fifth-Circuit-Judges-Report-FINAL.pdfhttp://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2015/12/20/supreme-court-texas-abortion-immigration-race-voting/77304068/http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2015/12/20/supreme-court-texas-abortion-immigration-race-voting/77304068/http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2015/12/20/supreme-court-texas-abortion-immigration-race-voting/77304068/http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2015/12/20/supreme-court-texas-abortion-immigration-race-voting/77304068/http://www.acog.org/About-ACOG/News-Room/News-Releases/2013/ACOG-and-AMA-File-Amicus-Briefhttp://www.acog.org/About-ACOG/News-Room/News-Releases/2013/ACOG-and-AMA-File-Amicus-Briefhttp://rewire.news/article/2015/10/02/institutionalization-abortion-stigma-care-ambulatory-surgical-center-looks-like/http://rewire.news/article/2015/10/02/institutionalization-abortion-stigma-care-ambulatory-surgical-center-looks-like/http://rewire.news/article/2015/10/02/institutionalization-abortion-stigma-care-ambulatory-surgical-center-looks-like/http://texasresearch.org/blog/video-more-proof-how-texas-anti-abortion-laws-harm-womenhttp://texasresearch.org/blog/video-more-proof-how-texas-anti-abortion-laws-harm-womenhttp://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/14/us/in-courts-running-out-the-clock-on-obama-immigration-plan.html?_r=1http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/14/us/in-courts-running-out-the-clock-on-obama-immigration-plan.html?_r=1http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/14/us/in-courts-running-out-the-clock-on-obama-immigration-plan.html?_r=1http://www.scotusblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/15-40238-CV0.pdfhttp://www.scotusblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/15-40238-CV0.pdfhttps://www.americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/news/2016/03/22/133797/dapa-matters-to-u-s-citizen-family-members-in-states-across-the-country/https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/news/2016/03/22/133797/dapa-matters-to-u-s-citizen-family-members-in-states-across-the-country/https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/news/2016/03/22/133797/dapa-matters-to-u-s-citizen-family-members-in-states-across-the-country/http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/05/supreme-court-police-cant-brutalize-your-elderly-mother-or-shoot-you-when-youre-unarmed/361934/http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/05/supreme-court-police-cant-brutalize-your-elderly-mother-or-shoot-you-when-youre-unarmed/361934/http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/05/supreme-court-police-cant-brutalize-your-elderly-mother-or-shoot-you-when-youre-unarmed/361934/http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/05/supreme-court-police-cant-brutalize-your-elderly-mother-or-shoot-you-when-youre-unarmed/361934/https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/civil-liberties/report/2016/03/14/133139/justice-waits-for-a-nine-member-supreme-court/https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/civil-liberties/report/2016/03/14/133139/justice-waits-for-a-nine-member-supreme-court/https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/civil-liberties/report/2016/03/14/133139/justice-waits-for-a-nine-member-supreme-court/http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/iofjs10.pdfhttp://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/iofjs10.pdfhttp://www.dallasnews.com/news/metro/20160221-chaos-backlogs-straining-immigration-courts.ecehttp://www.dallasnews.com/news/metro/20160221-chaos-backlogs-straining-immigration-courts.ecehttp://www.dallasnews.com/news/metro/20160221-chaos-backlogs-straining-immigration-courts.ecehttp://www.dallasnews.com/news/metro/20160221-chaos-backlogs-straining-immigration-courts.ecehttp://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/iofjs10.pdfhttp://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/iofjs10.pdfhttps://www.americanprogress.org/issues/civil-liberties/report/2016/03/14/133139/justice-waits-for-a-nine-member-supreme-court/https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/civil-liberties/report/2016/03/14/133139/justice-waits-for-a-nine-member-supreme-court/https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/civil-liberties/report/2016/03/14/133139/justice-waits-for-a-nine-member-supreme-court/http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/05/supreme-court-police-cant-brutalize-your-elderly-mother-or-shoot-you-when-youre-unarmed/361934/http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/05/supreme-court-police-cant-brutalize-your-elderly-mother-or-shoot-you-when-youre-unarmed/361934/http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/05/supreme-court-police-cant-brutalize-your-elderly-mother-or-shoot-you-when-youre-unarmed/361934/http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/05/supreme-court-police-cant-brutalize-your-elderly-mother-or-shoot-you-when-youre-unarmed/361934/https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/news/2016/03/22/133797/dapa-matters-to-u-s-citizen-family-members-in-states-across-the-country/https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/news/2016/03/22/133797/dapa-matters-to-u-s-citizen-family-members-in-states-across-the-country/https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/news/2016/03/22/133797/dapa-matters-to-u-s-citizen-family-members-in-states-across-the-country/http://www.scotusblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/15-40238-CV0.pdfhttp://www.scotusblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/15-40238-CV0.pdfhttp://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/14/us/in-courts-running-out-the-clock-on-obama-immigration-plan.html?_r=1http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/14/us/in-courts-running-out-the-clock-on-obama-immigration-plan.html?_r=1http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/14/us/in-courts-running-out-the-clock-on-obama-immigration-plan.html?_r=1http://texasresearch.org/blog/video-more-proof-how-texas-anti-abortion-laws-harm-womenhttp://texasresearch.org/blog/video-more-proof-how-texas-anti-abortion-laws-harm-womenhttp://rewire.news/article/2015/10/02/institutionalization-abortion-stigma-care-ambulatory-surgical-center-looks-like/http://rewire.news/article/2015/10/02/institutionalization-abortion-stigma-care-ambulatory-surgical-center-looks-like/http://rewire.news/article/2015/10/02/institutionalization-abortion-stigma-care-ambulatory-surgical-center-looks-like/http://www.acog.org/About-ACOG/News-Room/News-Releases/2013/ACOG-and-AMA-File-Amicus-Briefhttp://www.acog.org/About-ACOG/News-Room/News-Releases/2013/ACOG-and-AMA-File-Amicus-Briefhttp://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2015/12/20/supreme-court-texas-abortion-immigration-race-voting/77304068/http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2015/12/20/supreme-court-texas-abortion-immigration-race-voting/77304068/http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2015/12/20/supreme-court-texas-abortion-immigration-race-voting/77304068/http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2015/12/20/supreme-court-texas-abortion-immigration-race-voting/77304068/http://www.afj.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Fifth-Circuit-Judges-Report-FINAL.pdfhttp://www.afj.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Fifth-Circuit-Judges-Report-FINAL.pdfhttp://www.afj.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Fifth-Circuit-Judges-Report-FINAL.pdfhttp://www.chamberlitigation.com/cases/court/us-court-appeals-fifth-circuithttp://www.chamberlitigation.com/cases/court/us-court-appeals-fifth-circuithttp://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/10/george-bush-fifth-circuit-court-abortion-voting-rightshttp://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/10/george-bush-fifth-circuit-court-abortion-voting-rightshttp://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/10/george-bush-fifth-circuit-court-abortion-voting-rightshttp://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/meet_the_chief_judge_of_the_nations_most_divisive_controversialhttp://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/meet_the_chief_judge_of_the_nations_most_divisive_controversialhttp://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/meet_the_chief_judge_of_the_nations_most_divisive_controversialhttp://www.houstonpress.com/news/backstory-the-fifth-circuit-wasnt-always-the-most-conservative-court-around-6715354http://www.houstonpress.com/news/backstory-the-fifth-circuit-wasnt-always-the-most-conservative-court-around-6715354http://www.houstonpress.com/news/backstory-the-fifth-circuit-wasnt-always-the-most-conservative-court-around-6715354http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2014/10/16/civil-rights-groups-appeal-dismissal-ethics-complaint-judge-edith-jones/http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2014/10/16/civil-rights-groups-appeal-dismissal-ethics-complaint-judge-edith-jones/http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2014/10/16/civil-rights-groups-appeal-dismissal-ethics-complaint-judge-edith-jones/

Documents

Update: Texas, Where Are the Judges?